Red Seas Under Red Skies Read Along – Week 2

OK, so here are the questions for week 2 of the Read Along. As usual, please visit Little Red Reviewerfor everyone’s discussions.

1. Now that we know a little more about Selendri and Requin, what do you think of them? I worry Locke is suddenly realizing this con might be a bit tougher than he expected.
Requin really cares for Selendri and there is obviously something much more to their relationship. I don’t think this revelation affects Locke’s plan that much as he is always able to get out of tight situations. In fact I think Locke will take advantage of this relationship and use it in some way to get into the vault.

2. Isn’t the Artificers’ Crescent just amazing? If you could purchase anything there, what would it be?
Everything is just amazing there and I would just purchase the whole thing. If I can only pick one then it would be some type of mechanical pet. Something that can rival a scorpion-hawk.

3. What did you think of Salon Corbeau and the goings on that occur there? A bit crueler than a Camorri crime boss, no?
I agree with Locke that these sort of games are not to my taste. I’m just wondering does lawlessness always bring out the worst in people and do people with power always want to abuse it? I just hope Locke teaches them a lesson.

4. The Archon might be a megalomaniacal military dictator, but he thinks he’s doing right by Tal Verrar: his ultimate goal seems to be to protect them. What do you think he’s so afraid of?
I think he’s very proud of Tal Verrar and maybe upset that they lost the Thousand-Day War against Camorr because the Priori gave in. I don’t think there’s anything the Archon is afraid of. He just wants to prove to the entire world that Tal Verrar is a force to be reckoned with.

5. And who the heck is trying to kill Locke and Jean every few days? they just almost got poisoned (again!)!
Well I don’t think its the Bondsmagi because they’ve already handed Locke and Jean over to the Archon. I think if Requin wanted them dead then he would have pushed Locke out of the window already and obviously the Archon has an important task for them to do. I don’t think the new Spiders want them dead either. So I guess Locke did something in Salon Corbeau that pissed a lot of rich people off and now they want to get their revenge.

6. Do you really think it’s possibly for a city rat like Locke to fake his way onto a Pirate ship?
If it were any other people I would say no but it’s Locke and Jean after all. They have been faking it since they were a small child, I have confidence they will pull this off.

12 COMMENTS:

The Archon is a patriot and he is very upset that a bunch of civilians cost Tal Verrar the war against Camorr. He seems to have bigger plans for the entire region (uniting it, perhaps?) and it seems like he wants to take on the Bondsmagi as part of that process. He very much into his technology but I haven’t seen anything that convinces me that he has anything that can threaten the Bondsmagi. That said he might be more interested in marking his name in history – the one guy with guts enough to challenge the Bondsmagi.

I like your answer to number one. It’s a good point. Maybe Locke could use something, like a chance remark, to come between Silendri and Requin. Maybe that’s why he was trying to figure out a way to get in her good graces when they were taking their ride up to the top level of the Sinspire.
Lynn 😀

Despite being a con artist, I think Locke is still quite soft at heart and he won’t be able to stand the treatment of those pilgrims in Salon Corbeau. I’m thinking he went back later on to teach those rich people a lesson.

I also really hope Locke returns to Salon Corbeau, teaches them a lesson, then burns that creepy place to the ground. Except for the furniture shop, everyone there is just horrible!

i’m really liking that there is so much that Lynch doesn’t tell us. We know Locke and Jean have had certain conversations, but we don’t know what they talked about, and the Archon sure has one heckuva plan up his sleeve. . .

I like how Lynch uses flashbacks in this series. Every flashback in the book is there for a reason and serves to expand the background or provide more insights into the characters. He reveals what he wants us to know only when the plot calls for it.